Marcus Aurelius Thorne may bemoan the taming of the West, but at the luxurious new Hotel Colorado, playground of the rich and famous, that just means the scoundrels are a whole lot better dressed. Marcus is stalking his old enemy, Geoffrey Archer, a con man whose good looks and polished manners have gained him access to the Hotel's exclusive clientele and their pocketbooks. But when Mary Allegra Constanza Donatto, Countess Borelli, shoots a would-be train robber, then sweeps into the Hotel like a queen into her castle, Marcus suddenly finds himself in a different kind of hunt altogether.